Chapter 3

It was an hour later when he first heard the sound of the approaching OPP vehicle. A splash and a clunk let Matti know that they were about 100 yards from the camp, and had just driven through the water filled pothole he had been intending to fill-in before he headed back to Thunder Bay in a couple of days. A momentary regret flashed through his mind as he realized he should have told Sgt. Cross to warn the officers who were given the call to come out to Lake Watchanabi. He remembered passing along a warning that the roadway in was rough, so his regret didn’t last long. Just as Matti stood up from his seat on the front steps of the camp an OPP squad car nosed its way past the corner of the building. It had barely stopped when the sound of car doors opening and closing broke the fresh silence, and two officers, one male and one female, walked around the corner.

Matti’s first reaction had been to look at the female officer, a slender blonde whose hair was quickly almost covered as she put on the cap that she had been carrying as she came into view. He was therefore startled when the male officer spoke.

“Matti! How are you doing? I was a little surprised by the name when they sent me out here. I wondered if I was being sent to meet you.” Matti’s attention was immediately diverted to the man, and he smiled broadly with recognition.

“John! It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you! How are you and Emily doing? Did she tell you I saw her a few months ago in a grocery store?” Matti had started forward to meet his friend as soon as he’d recognized him, and the two of them were shaking hands as Matti finished speaking.

“Yes, it’s been a while, Matti. We sort of fell out of touch over the last couple of years. It’s too bad it takes a plane crash and someone’s death to bring us together again.”

Matti was about to affirm his friend’s comment when the female officer spoke. “I take it you know Sgt. Forbes. He never mentioned that he knew the person we were to be contacting.”

John Forbes laughed and said, “I didn’t realize it was Matti, or I would’ve said something. Sgt. Cross just said to meet Mr. McEwen. I knew my friend here had a camp somewhere, but I never got an invite to it. Matti and I have been friends since high school, but we sort of drifted apart when I got married. It’s only been harder to reconnect since the baby was born.”

“Yes, Emily told me about little Diane. She told me she’s going to train her on how to keep you wrapped around her little finger, just like her mother does.” Matti chuckled at the comment he had made at his friend’s expense.

A great weight had been taken off of Matti’s shoulders when he discovered that his friend was the officer responding to the downed aircraft. He had spent most of the last hour worrying that the officers responding to the emergency would spot his attempts at interfering with the crash site. He hated to think of it this way, but it would probably be easier for him to fool a friend. A wave of guilt washed across him as that thought came to him. He suddenly realized his thoughts about his relief at the situation he was now in had taken his attention away from his friend John, who was now speaking to him.

“ ... partner, Cpl. JoAnn Holland. She transferred up here from the Sarnia detachment, and I’m just showing her some of the patrol areas. We were actually headed to the Everest Mine when we got the call to come here.”

Matti recovered quickly and said, “I’m pleased to meet you, Cpl. Holland. I’m sure you can’t have a better guide than John. He’s worked all over the north, I think. At least that’s the way he tells it.” Matti was smiling as he finished speaking.

“I’m pleased to meet you too, Mr. McEwen. It’s nice to chat, but I guess we should see what we can do about this plane crash, and the dead body. I understand your last call was to report that the plane had caught fire, and I guess that’s the smoke I can see over those trees to the east.” Cpl. Holland had separated herself from the two men and was looking at the small plume of smoke that was still rising from the burning plane.

The two men had turned to look at the smoky streak rising into the sky while she spoke, and Matti was quick to say, “I think the fire has died down an awful lot. There was a thick column of black smoke for quite a while at first. That’s nothing like what I could still see 20 minutes ago. Maybe I should take you both out there, and then you could decide what else you would need from me in the way of assistance. Just bring what you need down to the dock. I have an 18 foot Lund fishing boat, so there’s lots of room.”

The two officers were quick to agree to his suggestion, and within five minutes they all had put on their life jackets and were headed across the bay. In another ten minutes Matti was tying up the boat beside the body lying on the shore of the small island. The fire was largely out, but it was obvious that it had been intense. The central section of the plane was virtually burned away, with only small pieces of aluminum frame and the steel frames of the two seats still remaining. The tail assembly had survived, along with the engine compartment and the one pontoon. The two wings were mostly burned away, and Matti realized that they had contained fuel tanks that must have caught fire from the heat of the fire he had started. He didn’t see how anyone would be able to reconstruct what had been there when he first arrived at the scene. The relief he felt was almost visible on his face, if anyone had been looking for it.

The professionalism of the two officers was very much in evidence now, and Matti just stood back and let them take over the scene. They were taking photos with their digital cameras, and writing notes into their note pads. Every few minutes they would confer before continuing. The flames finally went out, although smoke was still rising from some of the smouldering embers. A few of the trees had been set ablaze, and more were scorched, but even those flames had mostly gone out.

They seemed to be almost finished their inspection when John approached Matti and said, “Would you happen to have an old door, or a wide plank ... something we could use to put the body on? They’re sending out a van after supper to pick up the body, but we should probably bring it to your dock first.”

Matti thought about it for a few seconds and said, “I’ve got a few old 2 x 8 planks I could probably put together to make something for you. Would you like me to go back and get them?”

Matti’s offer was quickly taken up, and he headed back to the camp. He noticed as he pulled away that the two officers were beginning to examine the body, and it occurred to him that perhaps they just wanted to do that in private, away from a member of the public. That didn’t bother Matti in the least, and it was actually with some relief that he sped back to get the requested planks.

It was 45 minutes later when Matti returned. He had nailed strips across three 2 x 8 planks, creating an 8 foot long stretcher on which to place the body of the dead pilot. When he got back, the two officers appeared to have completed their work, as they were standing there waiting for his return.

“That looks like it should do the trick, Matti. If I could borrow your satellite phone, I’d like to check in at the detachment to see if there’s anything new that has come up about this plane. Someone may have reported it missing.”

Matti quickly handed Sgt. Forbes his satellite phone, and listened as his friend checked in with the detachment. It was apparent that no one had reported a missing plane, and it was at that point that he finally heard the name of the dead pilot.

“According to his driver’s license, the pilot’s name is Thomas Dugan,” and he continued with the man’s address in Peterborough, and his date of birth. Matti realized the victim was a little older than he thought, as according to the date of birth the pilot had been 52.

Sgt. Forbes then spent a lot of time listening to the officer he was speaking with, and Matti noticed that he moved away for privacy on the call. Finally he hung up and returned Matti’s phone.

“Well, our dead pilot here is well-known to the department. He’s a long-time member of the biker club underworld where he’s known as ‘Scooby’, and held the position of treasurer for a chapter of the club they call the Wolverines. That’s their symbol tattooed on his arm, and when we move him you’ll see he’s got their patch on the back of his vest.”

Matti replied, “I’ve heard of them, but I don’t think I ever saw one of them here in Northwestern Ontario. They’re not one of the biggest biker gangs, from what I recall hearing. Is that right, John?”